Comments on: EPA Says Prius Plug-In Gets 11 Miles Electric Rangehttp://www.hybridcars.com/epa-says-prius-plug-gets-11-miles-electric-range-41905/
Auto alternatives for the 21st centuryMon, 03 Dec 2012 19:24:39 +0000hourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.2.4By: Den Harehttp://www.hybridcars.com/epa-says-prius-plug-gets-11-miles-electric-range-41905/#comment-35656
Tue, 30 Oct 2012 03:16:08 +0000http://127.0.0.1/wordpress12/?p=9365#comment-35656I am very disappointed with my Toyota Plug-in because 2 months ago and have 1400 miles on car. When I first charged it up with the 110 volt charger supplied with the car, I got 13.5 miles to use up before the car went off battery. Then on recharges, every two or three times when the battery recharged the usable mileage dropped by a 1/10 a point. I now have only 9.5 miles to use before I go off battery. I wonder how low it is going to go? I took it into Gladstone Toyota and had the service department look at it. They said after they recharged it and found it to be only 9.5 and that there is nothing they can do unless the red warning light comes on saying that the battery is defective. I asked them how low the battery would go and still considered normal, and they said they did not know. So I guess I will keep loosing free electric miles. Don’t buy this car until they solve their battery problems.
]]>By: Mick Phttp://www.hybridcars.com/epa-says-prius-plug-gets-11-miles-electric-range-41905/#comment-35655
Fri, 17 Aug 2012 12:05:40 +0000http://127.0.0.1/wordpress12/?p=9365#comment-35655Chet

238 mpg is fantastic. I almost bought the Volt but couldn’t live with the limited space in the back and 4 seats. I have a Coulomb charging station at my business and do have a few Volts come and charge from time to time. With my Prius Plugin I am going about 12 to 15 miles on a charge but the cumulative effect with the car getting well over 55 mpg after the battery charge is gone is the best fit for me. I occasionally take trips of over 1000 miles or more and the overall trip cost is much less than if I owned a Volt. It is exciting to track the direction of this fantastic technology. I do really believe that everything being built will eventually be all electric though in a dozen years or so. Here’s to the Plug.

Mick P

]]>By: Bill Lordhttp://www.hybridcars.com/epa-says-prius-plug-gets-11-miles-electric-range-41905/#comment-35654
Tue, 07 Aug 2012 20:55:14 +0000http://127.0.0.1/wordpress12/?p=9365#comment-35654Just leased a 2012 Prius Plugin. I am 1.5 miles from town so can do nearly four round trips from my house before the HV function kicks in.

I am delighted with the 11ish EV miles per charge. I,like one of the other writers, charge through my 4,200 watts PV array.

I think it depends on your driving needs as to which of the current EV/HV vehicles is appropriate. For me, my 166 mpg is just fine!

]]>By: Chet Seapyhttp://www.hybridcars.com/epa-says-prius-plug-gets-11-miles-electric-range-41905/#comment-35653
Thu, 02 Aug 2012 01:56:34 +0000http://127.0.0.1/wordpress12/?p=9365#comment-35653I own (lease) a 2012 Volt, not the HOV one. So far I am pretty happy with it. I have 7950 miles on it and the computer shows a life time fuel average of 238 mpg. I charge it at home at a fraction cost due to photovoltaic system. I drive 33 miles to work all electric, then plug in there. I get a full charge in 9 1/2 hours on 110 volt, then drive home all electric. I live in CA so the back east winters would probably cut down on the electric performance. When I am in a hurry, 80 mph, it switches to gas about the last mile to work. My drive to work is mostly up hill. Driving home, I take a level different route and can make it home all electric with 13 miles to spare on a charge.

I bought the car in Feb 12 and have been to the gas station three times. I have taken a couple of day trips which cuts down on the over all MPG but it shows 238 MPG lifetime.

When the lead starts flying in the middle east, I will be really glad I got this car.

Sorry, it’s been awhile. So far so good. My wife will not let me drive the pip that much. The 05 Prius we have has become “old hat” so to speak plus it is looking a little ragged. I still love to drive it though as it drives the same now with 199,000 miles on it as it did the day I brought it home from the showroom. My wife is very diligent about keeping the pip plugged in though. After 6,700 miles on the car we are averaging 94mpg. Keep in mind that this is with her punching the ICE into action on a regular basis ARGGG! Despite that though still 94mpg. the more miles we put on the car the harder it will be to change that number. I reset my A trip counter as soon as I came back from Virginia and have not reset it since. I use it as a quick reference. If the other overall screen is used the car has averaged 87mpg overall including the 800 mile trip down from New Port News, Virginia. My Condo association still refuses to let me put in a level 2 charging station at the beach. I was plugging into the common area receptacle by my parking space but they sent me a violation notice and ordered me not to do it again.
This is frustrating because I am trying to move there full time. Anyway I have no doubt we would be seeing your mpg numbers or higher if we weren’t making trips of 120 miles 2 to 3 times a month. I haven’t tried it yet but understand from a c-net pip road test that the GPS will not work when using the other apps. By the way your right, we don’t use the heater much here in Florida except when I sneak my wife’s seat heater on when she is not looking. I think it’s funny but she doesn’t. Funny what 38 years of marriage does to a person. Oh well gotta go. In the 60s and 70s we used to say “Keep on Truckn” now we are saying “Keep on Sippn”.

Mick

]]>By: Chuck in NJ......http://www.hybridcars.com/epa-says-prius-plug-gets-11-miles-electric-range-41905/#comment-35651
Thu, 12 Jul 2012 15:08:23 +0000http://127.0.0.1/wordpress12/?p=9365#comment-35651Hello Mick……my last update never was posted…2 weeks back…..so well I have seen one Plug iN on the road since our last update…..looks like from what i was told at the dealer where I ordered my PHEV…..that the sales have been sluggish, cannot believe they are SO TERRIBLE…but I guess sales are the truth……well since then I have thus far recorded in order my last few tankfuls…..started with 100 mpge…..then 106 mpge…..110 mpge…..116 mpge……currently working on 121 mpge……yes i have been averaging 57 mph on the highway and I keep a gentle touch as I did with the Prius 5 liftback….its great that I was already accustomed to not pushing the throttle…its not a big deal to me never really had a heavy foot ever as I drove my american Ford products earlier in my life……so is this to be believed…..again its just in the way we drive……seems as if with each refill that the amount of days gone by has also increased…currently up to about 24 days between each refill…used to fill up 14 days with each tankful with the 56 mpg achieved with the Prii 5 2010……okay the one thing that I read earlier about the options on the plug in was ……..it would have besides the Remote Climate which is great the ability to cool OR warm the cabin via as the vehicle was charging the capability of using the fact of the car cooling or heating as it was in the process of charging ie,…. meaning the batteries would only be used IF the car WAS NOT being charged so the plug in power would achieve warmimg and cooling and then the priority AFTER the vehicle temp. in the cabin was met the car would return to charging……just wondered if that was something u were familiar with…..? I know you really would not have the need to heat the cabin….LOL…but in the NE we must bear with the cold …….its great though as in cooling off with the apps on my smart phone….shows you the temp in the cabin as the car is plugged in it uses the power before the lith ion power is used…..u tell the car thru the phone to start cooling or end it….or the temp controls the mode of the 10 minute max the timer allows before turning off the a/c auto wise…..i had the vip alarm put in …works as the 2010 also had….exactly similar……wonder if the remote start will become an add on accessorie though….? just a few more new things to share with you prius buddie….hope all is well with the PHEV at your end…..keep on passing the gas stations my friend…..Chuck……:)
]]>By: Mick Phttp://www.hybridcars.com/epa-says-prius-plug-gets-11-miles-electric-range-41905/#comment-35650
Mon, 25 Jun 2012 22:03:15 +0000http://127.0.0.1/wordpress12/?p=9365#comment-35650Hey Chucky,

I was gone for a week to a Student Life Church camp with kids from our church. While I was gone my wife drove the pip all week. She could care less about mileage. She stomps it down, kicks on the ice and ignores the gauges. I was up to 98mpg for the last 4,500 miles with 3-120 mile round trips and local 30-mile a day round trips a month. When I came back Friday the pip was down to 96mpg for the last 4,700 miles. I know it is kind of silly but I enjoy rubbing it in to leaf and volt owners. Oh well, I still should have the car up to 110 mpg by the end of the year. The trip down from New Port news Va. to Florida put me behind the 8 ball from the start but how bad would that be for a volt owner? As far as a leaf goes you’d have to use amtrak auto train Ha! Ha! I just have a feeling that when these pips goes nationwide next year they are going to be in short supply. That should keep the value up. I had the 5000 mile service done, not much to it, rotate the tires and check the battery. The oil doesn’t change until 10K. Pretty amazing. The very worst mileage without any charge has been 49mpg, that’s without taking any care of the gas pedal. The car without any charge normally gets 58 to 63 mpg if I am reasonably careful with the gas. amazing stuff. keep me posted, Mick

]]>By: Chuck in NJ......http://www.hybridcars.com/epa-says-prius-plug-gets-11-miles-electric-range-41905/#comment-35649
Sat, 23 Jun 2012 23:32:57 +0000http://127.0.0.1/wordpress12/?p=9365#comment-35649Hey…..Mick….so how r u doing in Fla……Its just gotten over 3 days of 90 plus in the Newark area of NJ…..we r right there 1 mileaway…..I hate to brag to u but i just cannot shake this great mileage….yes I drive a bit gingerly for the most part…..u will not believe this but its just stuck at 110 mpeg…..its so cool …especially since i never would have xpected to reach more than the 95/50……well my 2010 was usually 48 to 56…..temp. always affects the running to get heat……i want to tell all the full battery 20 KWH plus heavy batteried and no back seat ALL ELECTRIC that You can still use Hybrid mode 40 % of the time since the electric stays on longer with the PHEV…..You really do not have to worry about the electric staying off the PHEV seems to favor why it was created to XTEND the ALL electric range….oh and btw….you are correct when i turn on the ac or even just the fan with the ac OFF the EV range left range drops ALWAYS by just about 2 miles left less …..so I try to use less ac if possible……my full charges eah time have gone to 14.9 with a full batterie charge on the indicator……why will it NOT go to 15 miles range is killing me….FANATIC….OCD here…LOL….I LOVE this car man…..still say toyota has got the best long and present idea……ALL these pure electrics are too heavy/the range is so falsified…..not that I am a no it all but I knew I would not be disappointed with this expensive endeavor or mine ….thats why i will never own a car outright…..gotta keep up with the trends…lol…..well tell me what you have sought out my Prius friend…..Chuck….oh its already time for my first free service….indicator says soon as of two days ago….almost to 5000……..
]]>By: Mick Phttp://www.hybridcars.com/epa-says-prius-plug-gets-11-miles-electric-range-41905/#comment-35648
Fri, 01 Jun 2012 14:03:32 +0000http://127.0.0.1/wordpress12/?p=9365#comment-35648Hello Check,
How’s it going? Still loving it. What a great car. My 2012 PIP has over 4,100 miles on it now. With the exception of the trip down from New Port News Va. to Orlando, Fla. the car has averaged 95mpg in combination short under 14mile and 120mile long trips. The 14 and under trips are practically no gas at all and the 120 mile trips with one charge are averaging about 74mpg for the 120 mile run. I found a little trick that you may also have found. You know the weather here in Florida is almost alway warm and requires A/C on, diminishing the range slightly. I have noticed that if you have only 1 mile of range left and you turn off the A/C, around .4 mile is added extending remaining range to 1.4 miles. It just might make the difference in getting to a plug for us fanatics bent on using as little gas as possible. I would imagine that A/C on or off accounts for the difference in initial range variance shown after a charge. Try this, after a full charge turn the A/C button off and on to see if the range shown changes.
If you are beginning to use your A/C in NJ try turning it off right before the ice comes on to squeeze that extra .4 tens of a mile out. It won’t make any difference in your comfort. I finally had to spend money on my 05 Prius with 195k on it last week. I had to spend $725.00 on replacing the a/c evaporator. It is the first major repair on the car that has been done since new. I change my own oil using Mobil 1 5w-20 synthetic. This is becoming a personal battle with Prius nay sayers. My plan is to generate enough fuel savings, over a 20mpg car, to buy my next car in 5 to 7 years paying cash. The car averages 45 to 49mpg most all the time. My goal is 500k and if still running well, handing it down to a needy single mom or student. As boring as it is to drive the thing because of it’s pathetic predictable realibility it is otherwise fun to know that getting there and back with no problems is pretty much a given on any trip. Look forward to hearing from you.

Sipping through a very small straw, Ha! Ha!
Mick P

]]>By: Chuck in NJ......http://www.hybridcars.com/epa-says-prius-plug-gets-11-miles-electric-range-41905/#comment-35647
Tue, 22 May 2012 04:07:14 +0000http://127.0.0.1/wordpress12/?p=9365#comment-35647Mick P…..thats great news wondered how many PHEV’s they were selling thus far…..so what article was this that you read…I am very curious….well the good news IS my accounts have let me charge out of 5 stops ONE FULL CHARGE an evening…..I am self employed and deduct the KWH’s used each day as a credit back…..its amazing how much cheaper the KWH’s are…..ONE FULL CHARGE 4.4KWH is so cheap its unreal compared to 3.50 gal. gasoline……well I have been working on 106 per gal. mpeg…..this is how I give the PHEV its tests thus far……its is much better than your older Prius…..btw….my 2010 Prius 5 averaged just about 56 mpg…summer/spring as well as 46 mpg fall/winter so you should see a descent increase…..I have done daily trip charges as well as one charge in full using more HV than EV….must say they both do rather well in comparison if you get the MPGE say as I have done up to a goal …..say in this case or full tank ful…oh btw since I started driving the PHEV its gone about 2,400 miles the odometer that is…… averaging thus far 102/103 mpeg…..so my goal is 106 this time …..after reaching in EV/106 on the instrument eco monitor I then drive between HV and EV switching the drive range as the number goes up or down……then if the mpge drops from 106 to 105 I stay in EV again until the number goes up to 106 again…also a good practice is use the HV always for highways …..the Lith/Ion batts work well or best in your lower speeds best…..also if the road is flat switch to EV as well…..if Hilly switch to HV as well…..downhill ….COAST to get the regen. UP…also think the regen. on these later models works much better than the older models…..its been a pleasure playing the learning games on getting the best mpeg…..if you allow the EV to get close to the end of batt./charge left ……the vehicle goes down to .9 on the batt. charge indicator….. than the lines show up on the indicator counting down to .0 then the FULL HYBRID takes over until you charge up…..pretty cool….it gives you that distinction from no lines EV to the old Prius batt. lined Hybrid batt. indicator showing……well my testing continues with each day of going to work…btw….we have very few charging stations in NJ/NY metro area so its one time at my work place and the rest has been at home……but I must say the Hybrid end is truely what makes most consumers feel more confident with the Toyota vehicle since you CAN run out of juice and still NOT WORRY about waiting for another charge…..I think this will be the back breaker between a fully electyrified vehicle and a TRUE HYBRID decision when making the final decision…..I get anxiety when the batt.runs close to low but then if its 3.0 left charge I switch to Hybrid and it brings the charge back up a bit to get more distance…..thats the beauty here Mick…..this is the way to go I am convinced ……we made a good decision for this point in time…..btw….the 4th. generation will be a TOTAL change for the Prius in 2015….also the Toyota news site mentioned that they will be starting production in the US by 2015 as well…..so I have three years with this wonder vehicle….I usually keep a vehicle 3 years and thenstep up…its my only bad vice Mick…..an expensive one as well….I shall always have a small car loan to satisfy……so try what I suggested with the meters on the dash….I pay very close attention to the monitor…it helps in getting the most from the vehicle…take care ……Chuck
]]>